Archive for the ‘Wellness’ Category

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Leo Needs Weruva, Ice Pups, Vectra, and Nordic Naturals!

Monday, June 14th, 2010

Hi Tracie,

I’m thrilled that the Weruva has resolved Leo’s struvite crystal situation.  However, for the last 3-4 months he has been biting the tip of his tail and chewing on his paws.  The vet thinks he possibly has a food allergy to chicken, and offered steroid shots.  To give Leo some immediate relief the vet gave him one shot.  I do not plan to continue a course of steroids.

I  also switched Leo to a limited ingredient diet on March 14th, feeding him Instinct’s rabbit, venison and lamb.  There is no chicken or chicken liver.  He did really well until last week when he started over-grooming and biting his tail and paws again.

I apply Advantage flea control every three to four weeks. I was hoping the change in diet would help, but he seems to have the same allergy symptoms. I would love your advise on what other things I can do to help him.

Thanks!
Laura K.

Laura -

Here’s what is going on:

Leo needs omega-3 fatty acids in the form of fish oil — Nordic Naturals is my favorite because of its purity and freshness — it comes in pet capsules and you can puncture the capsule and squeeze a few drops on his paws every day for him to enjoy & lick off. These omega-3 oils are anti-inflammatory in general plus they nourish the skin at a cellular level.

You are so right to avoid the steroid shots — it creates a horrible cycle of dependence on them and it solves nothing — only deals with the symptoms and creates problems of its own

Food allergies are extremely rare and vets blame chicken all the time and then give shots — without any proof of why the animal is suffering – it’s ridiculous! I think you may still have fleas — one flea bite can create a terrible itchy reaction and the biting and scratching can cause more irritation.

The product you are using cannot compare to Vectra for cats — it is far superior because it is the newest technology and kills off all 3 life cycles of the flea — which can live in your environment for years unless the life cycle is ended. Plus, it works efficiently for a full 30 days so there is not reason to have a product that you have to reapply too soon because it isn’t working anymore! Please go on my website and see the page about Vectra so you can figure out how to ask your vet to carry it or you can go to your nearest Banfield Vet Clinic which has Vectra made for them under the name First Shield — this product is available only through vets — never online, to protect the quality and safety of the product.

About the crystals — to avoid them forming again you want him to drink as much water as possible — which cats are not inclined to do, especially if getting such good nourishment. So you have to make the water really tasty! In addition to giving my favorite canned cat food, Weruva, I urge you to buy a canister of Ice Pups (just ignore the name!)  from the Honest Kitchen — available online if you don’t have a premium pet store near you. It’s finely ground chicken & herbs which dissolves in water after you stir it around and makes it really delicious. So you can put half a teaspoon in a shallow bowl of half a cup of water and see if you can get him to slurp up some of that, too!

Let me know how everything goes!

–Tracie Hotchner

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How to Transition Her German Shepherds to Healthy Diet

Tuesday, May 11th, 2010

Tracie,

I was at the seminar today. I was the girl with the 2 German Shepherds on that horrific Hill’s Prescription Diet from the vet. I am sorry I had to leave without speaking to you. I had to get home so my husband could go to work and take care of my 5 year old.

I just wanted to thank you so much for all of the invaluable information, not just for my dogs, but for my cat as well! I had no idea how bad “kitty crack” was. I will be changing her diet and contacting Betsy Pallazzo about my GSD’s as well. I knew that the Hill’s was bad, but I had no idea HOW bad!

Really, I can’t Thank You enough! Not only was today informative but entertaining as well. You are a very intelligent, interesting woman to listen/speak to.

Christine F.

Sorry we didn’t get any personal time afterwards — my heart really goes out to you with the digestive challenges of your guys. And I definitely want to work with you to get their tummies settled down enough to eat some proper food. They are omnivorous carnivores being fed like feed lot chickens or worse! (As you now know for sure) And they deserve a whole lot better than that — which you also definitely know!

I was so grateful & impressed that you actually printed out the ingredients list of what is in that prescription diet your vet has been selling you — damned alarming!

So the first step is to get them on some Digest-All Plus powder. It’s the best digestive enzyme product I’ve found. You can buy it from Wholistic Pet Organics directly at 888-452-7263. Or you can go to SmartpakCanine.com to order it. But be careful: there are SO many other cool things on that website you might be tempted to add to your order since there’s only one low shipping fee for anything you buy! Come to think of it, go on that website for sure because I want to first try to transition them to a quality kibble before we try to get them onto Proportions.

In their case, we are going to do ALL kibble to begin with. Try to get their guts used to a step up, gradually. Check out all the Wellness brands they carry. You can get it as a big bag or as Portion Paks, which come pre-measured and sealed in daily meals and monthly shipments. That keeps it fresher, and makes sure you are using the same and correct amount at each meal. There is a Wellness that only has 5 ingredients I believe: a super hypo-allergenic one — choose that — unless you’ve already tried it, in which case, still try it because now you have the Digest All Plus. Boil up some white rice with a piece of chicken in it (so it tastes good) and add that to the kibble. I am afraid to say “add yogurt.” Let’s start with this but the Digest All Plus is essential. I want to help you through this to get to nutritional wellness on the other side of this nightmare!

–Tracie Hotchner

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Diabetes In Dogs: Why They Get It, How To Manage It

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

I have been getting quite a few questions about diabetes in dogs, even though it is a fairly rare occurrence (not like cats, where type 2 diabetes is at epidemic levels). I turned for assistance in answering this question thoroughly to my newest professional colleague on the website and on my radio shows — Dr Donna Spector from Chicago has graciously agreed to be both my new Official Veterinary Nutrition Consultant and the Official 2nd Opinion Vet on the show since she has it all: she is a board certified Internist, a member of the veterinary holistic doctors organization (AVHMA) and has a broad range of knowledge and talents. If you have any nutritional concerns about your dog or cat and would like to schedule a telephone or online consultation with her, she can be reached at spectorDVM@yahoo.com.

Diabetes In Dogs: Why They Get It, How To Manage It

Diabetes in dogs is based on a genetic tendency towards developing it — they are almost exclusively Type 1 diabetics and would become diabetic regardless of their diets (unlike cats who become type 2 diabetics from a diet with carbohydrates, or people who can develop type 2 diabetes from obesity).

In Type 1 diabetes, there is a true lack of pancreatic insulin production. Dogs who have a genetic susceptibility to immune destruction of the cells within the pancreas that secrete insulin (or some breeds are just born without the correct number of cells) will progress to a complete lack of insulin. The cells do not just temporarily shut-down — they are just gone. Because of this, dogs who develop diabetes are almost always dependent on insulin and no matter what you do to them, they will always require insulin.

If you feed your dog a high protein/low carb diet, it may help slow the onset of diabetes in a dog destined to get the disease but if you have a dog with the genetic profile to be a Type 1 diabetic it will happen, regardless. It may happen more slowly in a dog on that type of diet, but it will happen.

Every diabetic dog is a bit different and diet will have a lot more impact in some than others. Also the need for weight gain or weight loss factor into this dietary equation for each individual. You want to make sure your vet has checked your dog’s thyroid levels since an imbalance there can also affect the metabolism and cause weight changes.

If you already have a dog who is significantly overweight, then your best bet to achieve weight loss is the same as in any dog: reduce the amount of highly processed carbs which has probably caused the obesity (an all-carb diet with a heavily corn and grain based kibble) and increase the protein to kick start the metabolism into burning that fat. This is the theory behind the Atkins diet and others for people, and the same holds true for dogs: reduce carbs, increase protein, and you will see weight loss.

Once a dog gets diabetes you might mistakenly think that lowering the carbohydrates would be a solution (as it is in people) but in dogs, research has proven that a high fiber diet is the best management tool because it helps to slow glucose absorption from the intestine. This creates a more stable blood sugar throughout the day, making it easier to manage the diabetes successfully. So you want to keep a diabetic dog on a high quality diet and then add a supplemental source of soluble fiber to help best control the blood sugar after eating (technically called the post-prandial glucose level).

The best diet for all diabetic dogs is one that is high in fiber since that is helps to control the fluctuations of the dog’s blood sugar levels. Most commercially available high fiber diets contain high levels of a fiber that is called insoluble fiber (e.g. lignins and cellulose) while a tastier diet with better blood sugar control comes from adding more soluble fiber sources (e.g. gums and pectins) as the main source of fiber in the food.

No matter what fine food you’re feeding your diabetic dog, you will need to add significant amounts of soluble fiber (Metamucil, broccoli, carrots, canned pumpkin, and baked or boiled potato skins, and chick peas).

It is important that people realize that while fiber is technically a carbohydrate, it is a complex carbohydrate and is not digested by the body the same way as a simple carbohydrate, which is why not all carbohydrate foods are bad. The glycemic index/insulin index was created so that people can understand the impact of different types of carbs.

High quality kibble contains 2-3% fiber as insoluble fiber while a diabetic dog should ideally be eating about 8% to 12% fiber, especially of the soluble form of fiber to maximize the glucose lowering effects. But this means you need to add good natural sources of soluble fiber like psyllium husk (aka Metamucil), canned pumpkin and veggies such as carrots and broccoli in any form. Other sources are beans like chickpeas which have tons of fiber and protein and a very low glycemic index — if you mash them there is less possibility for causing gas. If your dog has issues about the stool being too soft you can add insoluble fiber in the form of potato skins (boiled or baked) but not sweet potatoes which are a source of fiber (the average sized potato (75grams) that give 3 grams of fiber but is a high calorie item.

On a gram basis, a high fiber diet is considered about 20 grams of fiber per 400 calories. So you have to figure out what the normal kibble supplies and then supplement. For example, let’s say Kibble X supplies 10 grams of fiber in 300 calories. We have to find a way to supplement an additional 10 grams of fiber in every 100 calories of food. In these instances, you often have to go to a purified form of fiber (like psyllium/ Metamucil) which supplies 3.5 grams of fiber per teaspoon (which is 20 calories). It isn’t a cookbook recipe, it’s different for each dog.

That is the current picture with diabetes in dogs but there are concerns from some experts that we may start to create a new form of Type 2 diabetes in dogs — similar to the situation in cats and people. Dogs are omnivores so metabolically they are able to handle a larger carb load than cats, but high carbohydrate diets are more likely to lead to obesity due to the presence of high glycemic fillers. Over time, dogs who are not genetically predisposed to becoming Type 1 diabetic may indeed develop a Type 2 metabolism from eating these type of foods — so a diet with reduced carbohydrates like Proportions would be a good way to guard against diabetes.

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First Shield At VCA Hospital is the Same as Vectra

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

Hi Tracie,

I’m Betty from Waterford with the adopted poodle who is about 11 years old.  Coki has been having a bad time with lethargy and nausea.  I’ve spent the better part of the last two days at the VCA Animal Hospital in Waterford.  Lab work shows that she is positive not for Lyme disease but another parasite caused by tick exposure.  She’s a pretty sick puppy and may still end up in hospital but I’d rather take care of her at home.

My real question for you is what is better than Frontline.  This is obviously a failure of Frontline.  I live near Harkness Park and Waterford Beach so ticks are plentiful.  I, in fact, have just finished the treatment for Lyme disease after being bitten by a deer tick.  A friend just gave me a tag called Shoo which is supposed to be good for tick repellent.  Have you ever heard of it?  I’m a little leery of something that is supposed to be good for 4 months and it’s a tag you put on the dog’s collar.

Any advice you can give me I’d appreciate, and yes I do have The Dog Bible.
Betty

I am SO sorry that Coki has been knocked flat by a tick-borne disease — and so sorry that you, too, got nailed by a tick. As you know, I have been talking about VECTRA 3-D on the air for so long, trying to get people to realize how serious the illnesses are and how important it is to have safe and effective protection. I am surprised you didn’t recall my having spoken of it because had you gotten it on Coki she would very likely not have been bitten and gotten so ill. I have talked so often on Dog Talk® about how the older anti-tick products have become ineffective against the ticks that have adapted to older technology — as you have found yourself with Frontline, which is an older product. There are numerous horrible diseases caused by these parasites, which can be protected against by using Vectra 3-D, but the recommendation is to use it every single month year round.  As soon as Coki is better you need to start her on Vectra 3-D and use it religiously every month, now that she has been weakened by one tick-borne disease already she could become even more seriously ill if another tick were to infect her with a different disease.  I am baffled why the doctors at the VCA hospital didn’t tell you about First Shield, which is made for them by Vectra and is the exact same product, always requiring a veterinarian to dispense it. As for that tag, I have never heard of it but it cannot possibly work as effectively as the full body coverage that Vectra 3-D gives.

As for your copy of The Dog Bible, did I already send you an autographed bookplate for it? I seem to recall having done that.

All paws crossed for a speedy and successful recovery for Coki- and just as soon as the veterinarian says she is ready for it, please start that Vectra 3-D and make it a year round habit.

Tracie

Thank you Tracie.  I did remember you talking about Vectra but I couldn’t remember the name.  On Saturdays when I’m listening to your show I’m usually driving around so I couldn’t write down the name, then there were a couple of family emergencies which took me out of town and, frankly, I forgot about it.  Coki is now doing mush better and I’m hoping to get her back on the medicine soon but will go by the doctor’s order.  I have been impressed with them and their follow through.  The vet called me yesterday just to check and see how she was doing.  They really would have liked me to leave her with them over the weekend but I had to take her home and take care of her myself.  We had a couple of rough days but we made it.  The big concern to me was dehydration on a 17 pound animal.  People don’t seem to realize that animals are a lot like little kids, one minute they are really terribly sick and then suddenly greatly improved, but watch out because they can go back down again really quickly.  If I sound like a nurse it’s because I am.  I’ll ask about the First Shield this morning when we go back to VCA.

Thanks again,
Betty V

Betty replied:

The VCA Hosp here says they are unfamiliar with First Shield so I’ll have to get it elsewhere.  She is doing really well now but had to have a little more subcutaneous fluid again yesterday.  She is finally drinking water instead of the reduced sodium chicken broth so I thing we are close to normalcy if there is any such thing.

So I smacked my forehead and said:

I am such a DOPE — it is the Banfield clinics that carry Vectra as First Shield.

Sorry about that. Use the Internet to find a Banfield clinic near you. What great news about her recovery — rather than chicken broth, I suggest you buy a canister of Ice Pups right away — it is made by the Honest Kitchen and is ground up chicken & herbs that dissolves in water — really great for recovering dogs because they get protein & other nutrition from the fluid. I use it for one of my dogs who doesn’t drink enough water. Go on my website and see the listing of all the East Coast stores that carry The Honest Kitchen products — otherwise go to the link for the company on my website and they will ship directly to you. It’s such a  wonderful and unique product and although it was intended to be made into ice cubes you could give your dog in hot weather, I think it makes a great meal alternative or fluid booster.

Keep up the good work.
Tracie Hotchner

The Dog Bible

The Dog Bible

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Portuguese Water Dog Has Problem With Topical Flea Treatments

Thursday, April 22nd, 2010

Email from a listener with a four-year-old Portuguese water dog who’s had problems with topical flea solutions:

Love your show!  My 4 year old portuguese water dog has always had an issue with topical flea solutions. We’ve tried Vectra, Frontline, Advantage etc. over the years. He gets very uncomfortable and itchy after the applications, bites his paws and has little red pustules that break out on his belly everywhere. Last year, we didn’t use any topical flea meds, had no skin issues!  Instead I applied one drop daily of youngs living palo santo oil on the skin near his rump.  Maybe I got lucky or maybe that oil worked!  He goes to doggy daycare three times a week so he’s around other dogs all year long. What do you recommend for dogs who don’t seem to tolerate the topical flea remedies?

Steve B.

Sorry for the delay in answering — I have been swamped. Topicals are the only reliable way to go for full flea control. And I use and highly recommend the newest formulation with a great applicator – Vectra – only sold by vets and super effective. If your own vet does not carry it, you can go to the nearest Banfield clinic where they all have Vectra but it is called First Shield. I got in touch with the doctors there and they said:

“Tell him to ask for Vectra Dog and Puppy, instead of Vectra 3D. He shouldn’t see a reaction. I suspect if he has tried Vectra, he used Vectra 3D which he doesn’t need if fleas are his primary concern. He can use just a small amount the first day, just to see, and then if no reaction, he can put the rest on the next day.”

Hope that helps!

–Tracie Hotchner

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Vectra Found Over the Counter

Wednesday, March 31st, 2010

Joan found a way to get Vectra even though her vet didn’t carry it.

Thank you so much for taking the time to deal with my “Vectra” problem. I went to  Banfield’s and purchased a 4 pack today. I find it is much longer lasting than Frontline Plus for ticks and fleas. What a relief to find it available as an ‘over the counter’ purchase, since my Vet did not carry it.  I love the internet, it solves a lot of problems and it found you for me.

Thanks again,
Joan from Ormond Beach, FL

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Leo Joins Fat Cat Contest on my New Radio Show

Friday, November 27th, 2009

You can see the photo of Leo on the Fat Cat contest page of www.dogtalkandcatchat.com but here is the sweet letter that came with it:

I just heard your show for the first time a few nights ago on Radio 710 WOR, and I Loved it! I was particularly interested when you started talking about dry vs. wet cat food, as I have wondered about this issue for a very long time…  Everywhere I look, I see / hear conflicting opinions, and it seems nobody can seem to agree; the one thing everyone does agree with (especially my VET ) is that my Maine Coon LEO is too fat!

He weighs 17.5 lbs!  After hearing your show and then visiting your website on Saturday 11-7, I decided to put Leo on a wet food only diet. (Leo also has a brother and a sister at home, but they aren’t fat BUT I don’t want them to get that way, so they will be eating wet food only as well)

I know that Maine Coons are supposed to be big boned, long, etc, but they are not supposed to be fat, and Leo definitely has a big belly. While he certainly is big boned, he is also overweight. When you view him from above, he is shaped like a bowling ball! Leo also seems to have some allergy issues: he has tiny little itchy spots on his skin, he sneezes, etc. and I have taken him to the vet several times regarding this, and the Vet definitely feels its allergies. Hopefully, the diet change will help this issue as well.

He is approximately 3 years old. I rescued him from a shelter a year and a half ago… he is a very wonderful, intelligent, sweet and funny boy, and I want him to be with me for a long, long time! Please add him as a contestant in your Fat Cat contest! I look forward to sending you updates on his progress every couple of weeks

At this time, I can’t financially afford Weruva, although it seems like a FANTASTIC product, and I hope to be able to switch them over to it by the middle of 2010 when things improve for me financially. For now, they love Fancy Feast Gourmet.

Thanks!
Connie, Leo’s Mom

Hi Connie! I am so excited to hear from you and see Fat Leo, who will be Slim Leo soon.  His photo is going right up on the website and you are going to get a special coupon for Dr. Elsey’s Precious Cat long haired litter!!

Thanks for joining the contest. It’s just wonderful to learn of your decision to get him off the “Kitty Crack” and save his beautiful life!

Tracie

P.S.
Petco has a food made just for them by Weruva called Soulistic — really high quality, only 89 cents a can — you can use that, too. On Petco.com they give my listeners a discount by putting in MYCATCHAT. Stay in touch with Leo’s progress!

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Unsafe Fluoride Levels in Pet Food

Wednesday, July 15th, 2009

One more thing to be worried about in your pet’s food: fluoride. HALO Purely for Pets has a great blog about this worrisome issue, which only makes me happier to have chosen HALO as the commercial dry food for my own dogs — and the only kibble I recommend anymore with a clear mind because it is made entirely of meat “fit for human consumption” — no meal or by-products. There isn’t another pet food company whose bagged food can make that reassuring claim. Here’s what I found on the Halo blog:

The information recently released from the Environmental Working Group about the high levels of fluoride in dog food is concerning. Although there have never been “safe” levels of fluoride determined for dogs and cats, the levels in the dog food tested well exceeded the safe limit levels for humans. When you consider the combined fluoride exposure dogs are getting from their food and tap water, there may be real health concerns. The HALO blog gives the following tips to avoid excess fluoride consumption in your pet:

1. Choose a natural high quality diet like Halo. Halo foods contain no bone meal or inferior by-products, which were found to be the primary source of excess fluoride.

2. If your pet has food restrictions and their food cannot be changed (from one containing bone meal or inferior by-products), decrease the amount of tap water they drink. Tap water from municipal sources contains fluoride and eliminating this source of fluoride will be beneficial. Most forms of spring water and bottled water have less than 0.1ppm fluoride. You should call the company and ask how much fluoride is in their water to insure a low intake. Some water filters will remove fluoride and some will not — again a quick phone call to the company will give you this information. Distilled water is fluoride-free. Your own well water should be fluoride free, too.

3. If you cook for your pet, avoid using Teflon-coated pans as they may increase the fluoride levels in the food.

4. Avoid using human toothpaste and oral rinse products that contain fluoride in pets. Dental health products designed for pets are without fluoride.

Tracie

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Vectra in Vermont

Saturday, July 4th, 2009

I was amazed to see that I can actually receive messages through Twitter and in came a plea for help from Dawn, a fellow Vermonter further North up in Williston, who is already a devoted user of Vectra 3D for her dog. But she desperately needed a refill and her own vet was out of town for the 4th of July weekend. Her nice note went as follows:

We’ve been using Vectra 3D since the season began. The ticks in Williston have been INSANE this year and Vectra 3D is the only thing keeping our Shadow safe! She’s 7 months, 50+ pounds and a pure joy!

First please know that we are so sorry to hear on DOG TALK® about Max the Golden passing away, but also understand that you loved him enough to let him go. We loved our Chief enough to let him go 02.08.08 (14 years old husky/lab/rottie) and have been blessed with Shadow in our lives 02.08.09 very strange and amazing timing! Shadow is 1/2 Bernese & 1/2 Greater Swiss Mountain Dog and 100% LOVE! She is a great “sister” to our 9-year-old daughter Sarah, especially when Sarah tries to fish in our stream, with Shadow’s help!

So nice to hear from you, Dawn — Twitter is amazing!

And I am also really really happy to know that you found Vectra 3D, or I should say that your vet found it. It is an amazing and uniquely effective product and for those of us who want to enjoy the fields and streams (what a darling photo, by the way! thanks for sharing it) it gives us complete confidence.

As for getting some right now before the Holiday weekend, it sounds nearly impossible, but I think you’ll be okay without it, given that we have had nothing but deluges of water (don’t know about Williston but here it is raining cats & dogs, once again, and the weekend portends more of the same.) The ticks are drowning (I hope!) or at least biding their time so your sweet pup will not be in jeopardy before Monday, when I hope your vet will be back.

I don’t know if you realize this, but Vectra 3D is also unique in that they have a very firm policy that it can only be dispensed by veterinarians and you need a prescription from your own vet (if you were not so lucky to have one wise enough to carry it!) in order to get the Vectra 3D from another doctor. The company explains that they do this for quality control — so it cannot be counterfeited or sold black market — and also so dogs can be tested by their vets to keep on top of whether they were infected by any tick-borne disease before they got the protection of Vectra 3D.

However, I just learned that the Milton Animal Hospital carries the product, so give them a try.

I do know the urgency you feel to have your girl totally safe (meaning your puppy AND your real little girl, who clearly spends a lot of time with her and therefore is protected by the dog not having any ticks around). But it’s only a few days and I think the lousy weather is going to offer some natural protection.

Thank you for your very kind words about Our Golden Max — he wasn’t my own dog — as you can see from the email trail on my website with Max’s Mom Pam — a listener’s dog whom I supported through the process of cancer diagnosis, surgery, treatment, etc. But being part of the DOG TALK family, Max was all of our dogs, whom we have lost to this terrible disease.

Tracie

The Dog Bible

The Dog Bible

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Not Convinced About Vectra 3D

Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009

I got this agitated email from a longtime thoughtful listener to DOG TALK®, Bob in Atlanta, about my recent show with Elizabeth Hodgkins about the need for at-risk dogs to be using topical tick repellents. She and I both sang the praises of Vectra 3D and this was disturbing to Bob, whose dog Smokey (who was Dog of the Month for April) uses Advantix, a similar product — he said he “totally disagreed” with the interview. Here’s part of what Bob had to say:

I listened to your guest Elizabeth Hodgkins rave about the product that the company that she seems to be affiliated with — Vectra 3D — and how it is better than any other anti-tick topical and possibly better than sliced bread :) . As you know, I am not a Vet (Smokey would attest to that), but I am very interested in science and medicine, and researching claims made by companies, and many of the comments she made about Vectra 3D made no sense at all, as far as I was concerned.

Dr. Hodgkins stated that the active ingredient in Vectra is permethrin and that is why it repels and kills ticks before they bite. Well, that is the same active ingredient that is in Advantix and Bio-spot (about which there are a lot of consumer complaints online and anecdotes about problems), which means it is basically old school, nothing new. I have used Advantix for years, and Smokey and I walk in tall grass everyday in the park next to my home where there are deer and I have yet to see a tick since using Advantix on Smokey. Being in Georgia, there are also tons of fleas and in the summer mosquitoes, and the mosquitoes avoid Smokey like the plague, again due to the Permethrin. Even though I think that there are some downsides to Permethrin, I still use it because I think the ticks and mosquitoes are a bigger threat to the health of the dog. What I do strongly disagree with is your guest acting like using Permethrin is perfectly safe, and one shouldn’t worry about it at all. Not true, in my opinion. Maybe the new formula in Vectra 3D that your guest is telling us about is better for flea control (although Advantix is superb in my opinion), but the focus of her discussions on Vectra 3D on your show seems to be tick control and permethrin.

Dear Bob – You seem all wound up in this email and I’m sorry that a DOG TALK® show distressed or confused you. I’ll try to sort things out for you, but the irony is that while you think we are in “total disagreement,” we actually agree! I’ll just hit the points in the order in which you raise them. First let me make clear my relationship with Elizabeth Hodgkins, who isn’t just a vet but has a law degree. She has been the Official vet on CAT CHAT®, my other radio show on SiriusXM, from the beginning — when she heard I was preaching against feeding cats Kitty Crack, which was a message that was her life’s work (after many years working for the Hills pet food company — and then for Purina — she realized the harm to cats from dry food and opened her own cats-only vet clinic, bred and showed Ocicats, and dedicated her life to teaching people that cats need to eat meat. She is one of the most morally pure people I have met in any field, but in the vet field she stands up against anything that is not good for animals or exposes the greed of people. Senator Richard Durbin invited Dr. Hodgkins as a special guest to the pet food recall hearings that he conducted on Capitol Hill. She is a person of enormous intelligence, and impeccable morals. She sold her vet practice and was in early retirement — when she took a job with Summit Vet Pharm to educate other vets about Vectra and Vectra 3D I was surprised but intrigued, because I know she only travels “the high road” and would associate herself only with “proper people.” Knowing her as well as I do — after many hours on the air together and behind the scenes about pet food and other issues — I was really intrigued what sort of company or product could have enticed her to go back to work in a corporate environment. The more I learned from her about Vectra 3D and about the ever-increasing dangers from ticks and fleas, the more I wanted to get it for my own dogs and to tell my listeners about it. Please recognize that the excitement and energy in that interview was due at least equally to my own enthusiasm about Vectra 3D.

You say that she spoke about Vectra 3D as though it is “better than sliced bread” — and you are so right! It really is! I share her enthusiasm for a more effective anti-tick product that inhibits the entire life cycles of fleas as the only product with the new technology of an IGR (insect growth regulator) to wipe out all life stages of the flea. Yes — this is entirely superior science and technology to anything on the market — and mosquito-borne diseases are no picnic, either.  What is different and superior about this product is that the patented applicator tip allows you to get more of the product down onto the skin, not the hair. This makes it a better product — my opinion being based on practical application and logic. The dilution of permethrin in Vectra 3D, as I understand it, is such that it spreads better and dries within 2 hours on the dog, after which time there is no danger to people or cats who touch those treated areas. In using it on my three dogs — 2 with very short hair, one with very long thick hair — I found this to be true.

You must have misheard the comments about the “total safety” of using such a product since that is not at all what Dr. Elizabeth was saying. She was explaining that safety is relative — this permethrin is a substance that has been used on human products (soldiers uniforms, mosquito netting, Nix head lice shampoo) for a very long time without causing problems. Her point was that we have to make choices in life and using Vectra 3D is much safer than the alternative of running the risk of getting a tick-borne disease. You seem not to have understood Dr. Hodgkins’ point about the safety of using permethrin on a dog at risk for coming into contact with ticks — her point was that everything in life is potentially dangerous, that everything carries some risk, so it is a matter of weighing the risks versus the benefits and where tick-borne disease is concerned, the scales definitely tip in favor of using Vectra 3D. Your own comments show that you are in full agreement with her about that. The bottom line is that using a product with tick repellent/killer is essential given the severity of the disease that can result otherwise. This is a message which is a whole lot harder to get across to veterinarians and pet parents than you can imagine — and after a couple of weeks on steeping myself in this topic, I am determined to get the message out and protect as many dogs as I can. In fact, I was so impressed by Vectra 3D and not having seen one tick on any of my free ranging dogs (on Advantix the ticks did attach and eventually died) that I asked Vectra 3D to become one of my website sponsors and they agreed. You know me well enough by now that I choose those companies affiliated with me very, very carefully — and Vectra 3D is worthy of that connection. I hope some day you’ll give it a try and personally see how it performs.

Tracie

The Dog Bible

The Dog Bible

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